Dept of Labor Relations Refuses Town of Rockland's Request To Process ULP Against Union

The Town of Rockland was handed yet another setback in its multi-pronged attack against Rockland Fire Fighters, Local 1602, IAFF. For months, the Town has engaged in costly and, so far, unsuccessful litigation in what appears to be an effort to prevent the fire fighters from receiving a fair contract. Attorneys Leah Barrault and Patrick Bryant represent the Union.

The Town and the Union were unable to agree upon a new contract. Per the statute establishing a Joint Labor Management Committee for police and fire contract negotiations, the parties will present their competing bargaining positions in early 2014 to an arbitration panel.

Months ago, the Town filed a charge, alleging that the Union engaged in unlawful regressive bargaining about its wage proposal. The Town voluntarily withdrew that charge. More recently, the Town filed another charge, this time claiming that the Union's failure to produce personal work tax information of individual fire fighters - information that the Union does not posses -- violated its duty to bargain in good faith. The DLR dismissed that charge.

Now, the Town has basically resurrected the unlawful regressive bargaining charge that it voluntarily withdrew months ago. The Town now claims that the Union's wage proposal to the Joint Labor Management Committee was regressive because it is greater than an off-the-record proposal floated during mediation. The Town objected to the Union's proposal at the JLMC hearing, but never requested that the agency reconsider its decision. Instead, the Town has sued the state agency.

The Town also has charged the Union with violating its duty to bargain in good faith because its JLMC wage proposal is allegedly greater than one floated off-the-record during mediation. The DLR has agreed that charges about the validity of bargaining positions are best addressed to the JLMC and the arbitration panel, and not through the unfair labor practice process. The DLR therefore has referred the Town's charge to the JLMC. The upshot of the DLR's action is that the Town has, again, failed to delay the arbitration proceeding that will resolve the contract bargaining dispute and hopefully provide a fair contract to the fire fighters.